Selling St. George

Believe it or not, the controversial plan to build an Islamic cultural center and mosque on Park Place is not the only redevelopment news in the area around Ground Zero. At long last there is real movement toward achieving the long-overdue, grand vision of downtown revitalization.

The Port Authority, which manages the Trade Center site, has reached a tentative agreement with Conde Nast to move its headquarters to the new 1 World Trade Center.

The media powerhouse, which has 18 upscale magazines in its stable, has agreed to consolidate all of its operations from Midtown into 1 million square feet in the 2.6-million-square-foot Trade Center tower. (Conde Nast and Advance Publications, which publishes the Staten Island Advance, are owned by the Newhouse family.)

For years, it seemed as if government agencies would be the only tenants there because private companies were reluctant to take up residence in a building built to replace those destroyed in one of the nation’s most terrible days. In fact, many companies fled the area outright because of its horrifying recent history; downtown has lagged ever since.

It’s hoped that Conde Nast’s relocation to the new World Trade Center will spark a flurry of interest from other private companies, just as Conde Nast’s move to Midtown in the 1990s served as a remarkable catalyst for the renaissance of Times Square.

The focus, naturally, is on bringing about the long-awaited economic and cultural renaissance in the area, and rightly so. The city and the nation need to see a strong comeback there.

“This represents a game-changing transformation of Lower Manhattan into a hub for creative industries, not just for financial services,” Robert Yaro, president of the Regional Plan Association, told The New York Times. “It’s been almost a decade since 9/11, and clearly people are now looking at this site and this building as one of the most well-located addresses in the region, not just as the site of a national tragedy.”

However, we also see a prime opportunity for this borough - one that could easily be squandered if borough leaders are not proactive.

We all know about Conde Nast icons such as Anna Wintour and Graydon Carter, who are phenomenally well paid and can live where they like.

But what about all the bright young people who make up the rank-and-file employees at Conde Nast and the other media firms that, it is hoped, will eventually populate the World Trade Center and other area offices as this transformation takes shape?

Staten Island, because of its proximity to downtown Manhattan and convenient ferry ride, has always been more well represented in the financial industry in Lower Manhattan. But when downtown also becomes a creative and media hub, where will those mid-level young employees live?

They’ll be looking for a convenient commute to their jobs, while, at the same time, quick, easy access to all the city’s cultural and social attractions which young people crave.

What about St. George? It’s the perfect platform for the lifestyles of the young professionals who’ll be working downtown. The planned homeport development and the rest of Tompkinsville and New Brighton fill the bill as well: A hop, skip and a jump to the ferry, and half an hour from their jobs in downtown Manhattan and ready mass transit access to everything else the Big City has to offer.

We don’t know where most of Conde Nast’s mid-level employees live now, but it’s safe to say it’s not in the same mid-Manhattan neighborhoods as their superiors. When Conde Nast — and presumably other creative enterprises — move downtown, their junior employees are going to be looking for affordable, convenient places in which to live close to that area.

If the North Shore of Staten Island is on their radar, many will discover it. But it has to be on their radar.

We’re certain that they’ll have heard about the other Yuppie Meccas across the river in Hoboken and Jersey City, and those will be their default destinations unless borough and city leaders are ready to market St. George/Tompkinsville aggressively. It would be a crime to lose all that vitality - and that economic activity - to New Jersey.